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Hello, I am new here, have not read through the forum but hoping to find some help... (sorry if I make some mistakes, English is my second language)

My baby girl is 5.5 months old and exclusively breastfed. She was diagnosed with laryngomalacia (problems with breathing) when she was born and doctors told me I would not be able to nurse her.. but be managed it She is gaining slowly but gaining every month, does take just ONE breast, she refused to nurse on the left. So.. just right breast.

My milk supply was always good, always enough. But during the last three days I wake up to an almost empty breast. A week ago she would not want to nurse during the night for a couple of days and I would wake up to a large engorged breast. Then several days later.. here we go, almost no milk in the morning and during the day.

She nurses 4-5 times a night and during a day - every 2 hours, sometimes even every 45 min for 3 hours and then go for 3 hours without nursing.

I really do not know what have happened, this is like first time almost no milk...

Welcome and congratulations on making it to 5.5 months despite what must have been a significant challenge!

How many wet and poopy diapers is your baby producing in a 24-hour period? If diaper output is still normal (here's a reference: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/enoughmilk-older.html), then my guess is that what you are experiencing is not an issue of low supply, but rather the normal adjustment of milk supply.

Most moms start out making too much milk, because their bodies err on the side of overfeeding new babies. During this overproduction stage, moms often experience engorgement and leaking, and feel "full" a lot of the time. While making extra milk seems like a good idea, it's really not, because making extra is a waste of mom's metabolic energy and puts her at increased risk for plugged ducts and mastitis. So after a while, the body decreases milk production so that supply matches demand very exactly. When that happens, engorgement, leaking, and feelings of fullness generally disappear unless mom goes a significant amount of time without nursing- for example, if her baby suddenly starts sleeping through the night.

When the adjustment of supply occurs, many moms freak out because it really does seem as if their milk supply has just vanished. But as long as the baby continues to produce adequate diaper output, everything is fine.

Long story short: count diapers. If output is good, then milk input is good and there's no reason to fret.

It's really normal for your breasts to stop feeling "full" and start feeling more soft around the four to six month point, but this doesn't mean you're not making milk anymore! Your breasts may also shrink back to their former shape/size (or they may be smaller than before, and softer before) - also normal. If diaper output is normal and your baby's behavior hasn't changed, all is well.

You can call me JoMo!

Mom to baby boy Joe, born 5/4/09 and breastfed for more than two and a half years, and baby girl Maggie, born 7/9/12.

She poops once a day, large poop, a bit sticky. If she skips a days she poops twice the next. I counted 4-5 wet diapers during these past several days. Her night diaper is really heavy but more yellow (I would say too yellow! even if I nurse her 4-5 times a night and she does not go for more than 3.5 hours without nursing) than during a day.. is it normal?

She's been fussy for the past month I believe because of teething.. Perhaps I am being paranoid but I think she does not get enough, always seems hungry. When I put her on a breast she would nurse a little then scream.. teething?

Last night she could not nurse herself to sleep, she seemed to want more. I checked the breast and there was just a little (I know that a breast could not be empty at all but before when she used to stop nursing I would check my breast pressing a little and milk would sprinkle everywhere). Perhaps she wanted more foremilk?

Interesting to learn that milk supply establishes around 4-6 month. I was told it establishes by 1 month

So you are saying I will not experience morning fullness anymore? Or it is going to come back? Should I do something to increase my milk supply? I try to drink more and eat well, resting with my baby girl is almost impossible

She poops once a day, large poop, a bit sticky. If she skips a days she poops twice the next. I counted 4-5 wet diapers during these past several days.

That sounds perfect! At 5.5 months it's very normal to skip a day or two when it comes to pooping. In fact, it's normal for an exclusively breastfed baby to go up to a week without pooping.

Her night diaper is really heavy but more yellow (I would say too yellow! even if I nurse her 4-5 times a night and she does not go for more than 3.5 hours without nursing) than during a day.. is it normal?

Yes, it's very normal for urine to be more concentrated at night. As babies start taking in less milk at night, their pee gets more concentrated at night. Some babies even start waking up dry when they discover how to hold their urine and avoid discomfort from a wet diaper.

She's been fussy for the past month I believe because of teething.. Perhaps I am being paranoid but I think she does not get enough, always seems hungry. When I put her on a breast she would nurse a little then scream.. teething?

As long as her weight gain and her diaper output remains normal, then it's quite likely to be teething that's causing the fussiness.

Last night she could not nurse herself to sleep, she seemed to want more. I checked the breast and there was just a little (I know that a breast could not be empty at all but before when she used to stop nursing I would check my breast pressing a little and milk would sprinkle everywhere). Perhaps she wanted more foremilk?

She may be unused to the new supply situation, which makes milk slightly harder to get. When you were pressing and getting a sprinkle of milk, that probably indicated that milk was really easy to get at because of an overabundant supply. Now she has to work a little harder- but the milk is still there.

Interesting to learn that milk supply establishes around 4-6 month. I was told it establishes by 1 month

Actually, milk supply is very flexible. It can be increased at any point. But it's common for supply to regulate down to match demand at around 4-6 months.

So you are saying I will not experience morning fullness anymore? Or it is going to come back? Should I do something to increase my milk supply? I try to drink more and eat well, resting with my baby girl is almost impossible

In my experience, once morning fullness disappears it's unlikely to come back. And I hate to sound like a broken record, but as long as you see adequate weight gain and diaper output there's no need to worry about supply, and no need to do anything to increase it.

I had oversupply for months and months, and I woke up engorged almost no matter what. But then magically around the six month point, it just went away. I still had plenty of milk, but it's like my breasts finally figured out the whole breastfeeding thing, and I would only feel engorged if I truly skipped a feeding. Now, at 20 months, I never, ever feel engorged, even when I do skip a feeding. Yet, there's still milk, and when I hand express, big drops of milk come out. It's strange how it works, isn't it?

You can call me JoMo!

Mom to baby boy Joe, born 5/4/09 and breastfed for more than two and a half years, and baby girl Maggie, born 7/9/12.

I have OS, my baby is eight months old, and I never feel engorged. I regularly pump five to eight ounces from ONE breast without it ever even feeling full. Just goes to show that there can be tons of milk in the breast without any full feeling.